Final Battle: Victory's Allure
by Garsson
Summary: Everything Link fought for has led him to this moment as he faces his greatest foe on the battlefield. One way or the other, it all ends here. The history of light and shadow shall be written in blood. Contains spoilers about the final battle of Twilight Princess. Just so you know. I mean, you probably already know everything anyway, but I figured it was still polite to warn you.


Thunder crashed. Harsh shards of lightning rent the sky, illuminating Hyrule Field in bright, strobing bursts. Behind Link, the yellow wall of unholy magic cut him off from Princess Zelda, trapping him on the battlefield with Ganondorf. The man laughed.

Link drew his sword and took up his fighting stance. There was no turning back, now. Not that it mattered.

Ganondorf stalked nearer, his own sword-delicately crafted and glowing with unearthly white light-pulsed in time with the shining wound in his stomach.

 _Odd,_ Link mused, his thoughts detached as he eyed his murderous opponent and shifted his feet, _How a man who hates the light so much should glow so brightly_ _… It's almost as if…_

Ganondorf swung. Link leapt sideways. He felt a rush of air as Ganondorf's blade passed within an inch of his head. Link whirled around, slashing in reply, and-out of the corner of his eye-he saw the way the the Dark King's eyes followed his shining blade—the way his expression twisted and twitched at every flash of lightning.

Struck by some strange instinct, Link sheathed his blade and pulled his fishing rod from his gear. It had been a gift from a dear friend—the bright, shining lure had drawn many a fish to its death. Even now, the polished bauble gleamed like silver.

Ganondorf scowled, furrowing his brow at Link's sudden insanity. The man's mouth opened in an unformed question. Link shrugged and cast his line past Ganondorf's head. Ganondorf turned, his face twisting with confused hate as his eyes snapped to follow the shining lure.

Link dropped the fishing rod and lunged, drawing his sword and driving it into the glowing wound in Ganondorf's stomach. Ganondorf roared with pain and knocked Link's blade away with his own sword.

The Dark King swung his weapon, aiming to sever Link's torso from his body. Link flipped backwards. The swordpoint barely grazed his chest. Ganondorf jumped after Link, bringing his sword down upon Link's head. Link only barely managed to catch his enemy's blade with his own and block his strike. Blood trickled down the front of his green tunic. Ganondorf smiled. Link snarled.

They struggled for a moment, each pushing to overpower the other, until at last Link gave a mighty shove and broke free, forcing Ganondorf back.

Thunder crashed again. Ganondorf growled, closing the distance in an instant to swing his fist at Link's head. Link couldn't raise his shield in time, and the punch connected. Sharp pain colored the edges of his world black, and Link hit the ground-all air knocked from his lungs. Before he could recover, Ganondorf stabbed downward. Link threw himself to the side. Ganondorf's sword sunk deep into the earth by Link's cheek, exactly where his head had been.

Gasping for breath, Link scrambled to his feet, his head ringing painfully. He shook himself and raised his blade. The point of his sword wavered in the air-bobbing tiredly in time with his pounding heart.

Ganondorf charged. Link swung, blinded by the terror and rage of battle. The King of Darkness fell. Guided by instinctive frenzy, Link pounced-plunging his sword deep into Ganondorf's chest in a finishing blow.

He didn't release his blade until Ganondorf's scream faded to its final echo.

Link stood, his legs shaking. The storm broke. The first pale rays of dawn streaked across the horizon. Link exhaled a trembling breath and turned toward Zelda, but a sound behind him made him whirl back around.

Ganondorf pulled himself to his feet and stood-his face twisted into a mask of rage and pain. "Do not think this ends here," the man growled between labored breaths, dark blood trickling down from the corner of his mouth into his scarlet beard, "The history of light and shadow will be written in blood!"

He took a staggering half-step forward, as if to fight again.

Link looked him in the eye and said nothing.

The man raised his hand, but the goddess' power—the sacred force that had driven him for so long—faded, deserting him. Ganondorf took one final, rasping breath-and died there on his feet. Even in death, he did not fall.

Link lowered his gaze, mourning for all that had been lost, while behind him, Zelda murmured a prayer.

The wind picked up, and the sun began to rise.

* * *

 **I've always loved this scene. It's so... dramatic and fulfilling. Playing with the fishing rod screws with it a little, though. Which is why I just _had_ to try and write this whole mess down-I had to see if I couldn't preserve the drama in such a silly scenario. The absurdity of the juxtaposition gets me _every_ time...**

 **Because yeah-if you didn't already know, you can use the fishing rod to distract Ganondorf in the final stage of the final battle of Twilight Princess-just like depicted here. It's honestly silly to imagine what must be going through Ganon's head... "ONCE I KILL THIS UPSTART BOY, THERE SHALL BE NOTHING IN THE WAY OF MY CONQUE-ooh, _shiny!"_ But I digress.**

 **Anyway, I love hearing your comments and opinions, so don't forget to leave a review!**

 **Until next time!**

 **~Garsson**


End file.
